Collision
by PrimaDonnaDevvi
Summary: Five years after the terrifying Red Eye flight, Lisa's family is in danger, and the only man who can help her is the man she swore never to see again. Now complete R&R. Some JxL in last chapter.
1. Chapter One: Family

**Collision**

**Summary**

Takes place five years after the terrifying red eye flight. Lisa now has a child, a husband, and a steadily paying job. But when her husband and daughter's lives are at stake, she must do anything to save them – including recruiting the help of the man she swore to never see again – Jackson Rippner.

Lisa woke at the sound of a crash downstairs. Groaning, she pulled herself out of bed.

_What the hell did she do now? _She thought grumpily, wishing she could just go back to bed. It was seven o'clock in the morning. Work didn't start for another three hours. It was Michael's job to deal with this, but she could faintly hear the sound of the shower running across the hall. She grudgingly dragged herself down the stairs.

What she saw was less than she had expected, but more than she wanted to deal with. Pots, pans, and some other various kitchen items were strewn across the floor. Sitting in the middle of the mess, not to Lisa's surprise, was her two-year-old daughter, Madeline.

"Boo-boo," She said, giggling ferociously.

Lisa sighed. "Mattie," she said, trying to hide her anger, "this is a no-no. Okay?"

Mattie looked shocked that she did something wrong. A little more forcefully, she said "boo-boo!"

"Yes, I know," Lisa said quietly, "I'll clean it up." She stooped to the floor and started picking up the pots with as much vigor as she could muster. Just then, her husband, Michael, walked into the room.

"Hey, hon, you're not supposed to be up this – oh," he said, looking foolish. "Sorry I wasn't here."

"No, no, it's fine," Lisa said, walking over and kissing him, "I needed the early morning exercise. Lord knows I don't get enough of it at work."

Michael laughed. "Well, you go back to bed," he said, smiling. "I'll get Mattie to day care."

"Okay," she said. "Bye-bye, Mattie," she said, hugging her daughter.

"Bye-bye, Mama," Mattie said.

Lisa rushed up the stairs. If there was one thing she had learned to handle, it was being able to pretend to not be disappointed. It came with the package when you had a two year old. Not to mention a husband who had a God-given talent of being at the wrong place at the wrong time. She let herself fall into the covers of her bed. Just before she could get some sleep, Michael walked in.

"Um, sorry to bother you, Leese…" he looked highly upset.

Lisa noticed the look on his face. "What's wrong?" she asked.

"It's about…Rippner…" he fumbled with his tie.

"What?" She asked, interested now.

"Well, um, I was just watching the news, and…" he trailed off again, clearly not wanting to have this conversation.

_"What?" _Lisa asked, more firmly this time.

Michael seemed to realize that the best way to say this was fast. "They're letting him off on good behavior," he said as fast as he could.

Lisa stared at him for a full ten seconds. Then she leaned over, put her face in the pillow, and screamed as loud as she could.

"Leese, I'm sorry, I tried to talk Judge Crawford out of it, but…" He shook his head helplessly. "It's not really good behavior they're letting him off on. He has information on a terrorist group that formed uptown. He's revealing it in exchange for early release."

Lisa looked up at him, tears forming in her eyes. "I can't handle it, Mike," she said, crying. "I don't know what I'll do…if he comes looking for me…"

She started to sob. Michael crossed over to the bed and took her in his arms.

"Lisa," he said, "I'll tell you this: I won't let him anywhere near you." He looked her in the eyes. "I would never let anything happen to you. Understand?"

She nodded. This is why she had married him. Because of these moments that showed how brave he really was.

"I have to go to work now," he said, smiling. "I'll call you later, alright?"

She nodded, unable to get words out. He kissed her, then walked out and closed the door.

Staring out the window, Lisa quietly pondered what Michael had just told her. She believed every word he had just told her, but…a small part of her thought of how easily he had tricked her before. What was the difference this time?

Lisa quietly hoped that five years in jail had really changed him.

Well, folks, that's the end of chapter one! I'll update as soon as I can. Please R&R. Remember, this is my first fanfic, so be nice!


	2. Chapter Two: Threats

**Chapter Two**

Lisa rested her elbow on the desk, clearly irritated.

"Mr. Clark," she said, trying not to show the desperation in her voice, "we've already booked room 32. I'm afraid you'll have to stay in another room."

"That's not the point," Mr. Clark said, looking dangerously angry, "I booked this room six months ago. You've already made a promise to our family. We need this room."

"I'm sorry, but I don't think you understand," Lisa said, not bothering to hide the annoyance in her voice, "when you booked this room, you should have listened when Ms. Johnson clearly said that you can only book a hotel for three months in advance. If you had been listening, which I know now that you weren't, we wouldn't be having this conversation. Do you understand now?" she looked hard into his eyes, which had the desired effect.

"Er, I-I guess I misheard Ms. Johnson," he said, looking scared.

"Alright," Lisa said, now smiling brightly. "Why don't I assign you to room 34? It has an amazing view, and I think you and your family will enjoy it."

"Al-alright," said Mr. Clark.

Lisa smiled and picked up the phone. "Ms. Johnson?" she said, trying to sound as professional as she could without laughing, "Please prepare room 34 for our new guests."

"They're still here? I thought you'd scared them away," said Audrey Johnson, sounding slightly disappointed.

"In my dreams," Lisa said. She put down the phone. "Please wait in the lobby, your room will be ready shortly.

Mr. Clark ushered his family to the corner of the lobby farthest from the clerk desk. Lisa smiled with satisfaction. She had been hoping that the Clark family would just run off to another hotel, but this was better. At least she was getting money.

Suddenly, the phone rang. Hoping that is wasn't another angry customer, she picked up the phone gingerly.

"Caraway Hotel, how may I help you?" she said, pulling out a pad of paper and a pencil to write down the latest complaint.

There was silence at the end of the line. "Hello?" Lisa said, more firmly this time.

"Check your inbox."

"Excuse me, what-?"

But the phone went dead. She looked at the phone in confusion. _That was weird_. She hung up the phone. _Why do I need to check my email? _She wondered in confusion. _I checked it five minutes ago._

Figuring it might be a good idea to just check it, she headed to the computer. She entered her password for her email, and settled down to wait for it to load.

When it finished loading, she scanned her mail thoughtfully. Nothing there, except for the mail she had just checked a few minutes ago. She laughed at herself inwardly. _Oh, Leese, you are so gullible._

Just as she was walking away, she heard a _ding, _which she knew was the signal for a new message. She walked to her desk. There, in her inbox, was a simple message. It was labeled "Read Me." Sitting down at the desk, she clicked on it.

"Meet me in the alley in Westwood Avenue at midnight tonight, or your family dies. No exceptions. I know exactly what you're doing, and when you do it. If you alert the police, I will know. J."

_Ah, the plot thickens! Chapter three will be up soon. Enjoy!_


	3. Chapter Three: Freedom

**Chapter Two**

Jackson Rippner blinked at the sudden sunlight. He looked back at where he had come from, glad he was out of the hellhole for good.

"There's a bus waiting for you out there, Rippner," said the guard. "I suggest you get on it before the judge changes his mind."

Jackson smiled mischievously. "Well, what if I wanna walk?" he asked.

"I don't care what the hell you do, just get the hell outta here," the guard said, narrowing his eyes. "I've had just about enough of you here."

Jackson walked to the bus and got on. He watched as the trees zoomed by his window, and he thought, _freedom. _This is what he had fought so hard for, why he had desperately given all the information he had on Bentley's new gang uptown. It was all he had to do to convince the idiotic judge that his information was helpful. Now he was free, and no one could take that away from him, not even the little bitch Lisa. He knew that her husband had been trying to convince Judge Crawford to refuse an early release. Jackson felt his throat, where Lisa had stabbed him only five years previously. The damage hadn't been necessarily permanent, but his voice was raspy, and it hurt to yell.

The bus halted to a stop at the Caraway Hotel. Jackson was shocked. This was a nice hotel. Very nice, actually. He got up, walked to the front of the bus, and faced the bus driver.

"Are you sure this is where I'm supposed to go?" he asked, perplexed.

The driver looked at him, amused. "Part of the package for the information you gave the court," he said. "Unless there's somewhere else you want to go."

Jackson shook his head. "No, this is fine." He looked up at the massive hotel. This would work fine. As he started to walk towards the door, the driver yelled, "wait!"

"What?" Jackson asked.

"You left your bag." the driver motioned to the back of the bus. There, in the very back seat, was Jackson's bag. He shook his head, amused at himself. _So much for freedom when you don't even have your bag. _He got the bag, walked out of the bus, and watched it go. _Almost lost my money there_, he thought. He turned around, only to bump into a woman. "Terribly sor-" he began, but the words died in his throat...

Standing directly in front of him, face streaked with tears, was Lisa Reisert.

_No, Lisa's not going to be too happy with Jackson in the next chapter. In fact, she's kind of gonna be mad as hell. I'm working on the next chapter at the moment. I should have this updated soon._


	4. Chapter Four: Alliance

**Chapter Four**

Lisa stared at Jackson in shock. _No, _she thought, _this isn't how it works. I was supposed to find him. This isn't the way things were supposed to happen._

"You...you..." she tried to get the words out, but she couldn't. _This isn't how it was supposed to work._

Suddenly Jackson smiled. "Hello, Leese," he said.

That got Lisa to snap back into the real world. Without warning, she threw herself at him. Taken by surprise, Jackson fell over. She closed her hands around his neck.

"Where the hell are they?" she asked sharply.

Jackson looked stunned. "I don't know what you're talking about," he said, straining to get the words out.

"My husband? My daughter? _Where are they?_" she yelled. She wasn't as much worried that he was the one who had taken them, as she was worried he _wasn't_ the one who had taken them. _He has to be the one who took them, _she thought. _That way there's an explanation for everything..._

"Please," she pleaded, loosening her grip slightly, but only slightly, "please promise me they're not hurt."

Jackson was looking dazed. "I can't promise you anything," he said, "because I don't know what the hell you're talking about."

With a sob, Lisa let go of him. _What do I do now? _She thought.

"I have to find them...I have to find them..." she murmured, over and over. Jackson looked at her, and in the large feeling of hatred he had for her, guilt and pity were mingled in. _Don't go feeling sympathetic, Jack, _he told himself, _it's your biggest weakness. _Despite the voice that was telling him over and over to just get out of there before she went mental again, he heard himself saying, "What happened?"

Lisa looked up sharply, her eyes filled with anger. "What are you doing here, anyway?" she said, between her tears.

Jackson was about to answer, but stopped himself. What _was _he doing here? Why was he at Lisa's hotel, of all the places in Miami? Was it coincidence? It had to be. It was still strange, after one year in the hospital and four years in prison, the first person he meets on the street is Lisa Reisert.

"I...this is the hotel where I'm supposed to be staying," he said.

Lisa shook her head. "They said on the news that you were going back to your house."

"I don't own a house."

He looked down at his feet. Lisa looked at him, wondering why they had suddenly been forced together. She needed to find her family, but something wasn't right. Somehow, Jackson was connected to all of this. Why did the news say he was going to a house he never had, yet really be going to the hotel that she now worked at? She knew she had to ask for his help, yet there was only one thing she could think about: Jackson threatening her, pointing a gun at her head. She brushed the thoughts away. She needed his help, no matter what cost.

"Alright," she said. She had printed out the email she had received from this "J." She handed the copy to Jackson. As he read it, his eyebrows went up, and he had a look crossed between concern and confusion on his face.

"Well, clearly the only way to find this man is to meet him in the alley as planned," Jackson said, looking thoughtful, "but you don't respond well to threats. I think I'm right in guessing that you have every intention _not_ to show up in the alley at midnight?"

She nodded. "But only if I can find this J in time." She stared at him. "Any possibilities who this might be?"

Jackson shook his head. Then he glanced sharply at the message. "Unless..."

Lisa stared at him. "What?"

He looked up at her. "The person who wrote this might have wanted you to believe that it was me who sent it. That's why he signed it 'J.' And there's only one person who could want to do that." For the first time since Lisa had met him, Jackson looked genuinely scared.

"Who?" she asked.

Jackson took a breath. "His name's Dixon Bentley. He's the leader of the terrorist group that's been all over the news." He shuddered. "The one I just busted. Almost." He looked down again. "I didn't tell the cops everything. But Bentley doesn't know that. He'll do whatever he can to get his revenge."

Lisa looked at him in disbelief. "But what does that have to do with me?" she asked.

Jackson shrugged. "I guess he suspected that the only way to get to me was through you. He knew that, if he kidnapped your family, you would go straight to me."

Lisa's eyes narrowed. "Where is he? Where does he live? You were in contact with him, you have to know something."

"The only thing I know," Jackson said, ""Is two things: One, he's in hiding, and two, he's not planning on coming out any time soon."

"Then how is he able to control a terrorist group if he's in hiding?"

"He has dozens of criminals, crooked cops, and would-be terrorists at his disposal. They'll do almost anything for him. Including kidnapping innocent civilians." He nodded knowingly at Lisa.

Lisa leaned against the wall of the hotel. She sat up suddenly.

"What?" Jackson asked.

She swayed slightly. "It's nothing," she said weakly. "Just feeling a little sick."

She stumbled, and Jackson caught her arm. Suddenly, all she could think about was the red eye flight. Why did she trust him with this? She pulled her arm away, glaring at him.

"How do I know I can trust you?" she said suspiciously.

Jackson shrugged. "You can't," he said, "all I can tell you is that I want him dead as much as you do."

A look flashed through his eyes, and Lisa recognized it immediately. It was the look he had when she had told him about the scar just below her neck. It was a look that showed that there was more to a situation than she thought. And, most of all, that she could either trust him completely, or distrust him completely.

"Come on," she said, heading towards her car, "my house."

_It seems like Jackson is showing a more compassionate side in this chapter. Don't expect it to last too long. Sorry this chapter was a little bit scattered. Next chapter will focus on Jackson's grudge against Bentley, and will be up as soon as possible._


	5. Chapter Five: History

**Chapter Five**

Lisa parked the car in the driveway, looking sullen. _What are you getting yourself into, Leese? _She asked herself, nearly banging her head against the steering wheel. _How can you possibly trust this man? After all he's put you through..._She looked over at him, while he stared patiently back.

"Shouldn't we be getting out of the car?" he asked sarcastically.

Lisa groaned. Leave it to good old Jack to make some witty comment. "I will get out of the car when I need to," she said, trying to sound as menacing as possible.

Jackson just shrugged. "Fine by me," he said, stepping out of the car.

"Wait!"

Jackson turned around, sat back down, and shut the door. "Yes?"

"Why..." she started, then stopped, not sure how to ask the question. "Why do you want to help me? What did this Bentley do to you to make you so...angry with him?" she asked, feeling foolish. Why was it her business?

Jackson stared at her, looking sad, angry, and confused all at once. For a while, there was silence, and then he started to talk. "I had a life once," he said, his hands clenched into fists, "and a wife. Julia. I loved her more than anything." He stopped again, looking like someone had slapped him. "One day, I witnessed something. A murder. Bentley killed a man who had tried to accuse him of conning him. Bentley saw me, and threatened to kill Julia. I was stupid, I didn't think he would really do it. I thought that, if the police caught him in time, he wouldn't have time to carry out his threat." he looked at Lisa, a hard, miserable look. "I underestimated how many criminals were under him. One day, I went home, and..." he trailed off. "I found her. They had shot her six times. Not only that, but Bentley managed to disprove the murder I had accused him of. So he's been on the streets ever since." Jackson looked away. "I've been looking for him ever since. I had a contact that told me about Bentley's plans to create a terrorist group. That was right before the red eye flight, ironically. I was going to report it, but didn't have time before..." he grunted uncomfortably before continuing. "Anyway, I couldn't report it. And when I was at the hospital and in jail, I had completely forgotten about it. But then...then I started hearing news about a terrorist group forming, and I thought, who else could it be, other than Bentley? So I reported what the contact had told me to the police. _Almost _everything." he shook his head. "I wanted to be able to give enough information to get out of jail, but not enough to prove him guilty. You see," he looked at Lisa with an anger that she had never seen before, "I want to kill that son of a bitch myself." He turned away. "Anything else you want to ask?"

Lisa couldn't speak. "I'm...sorry..." she said, looking stricken.

Jackson looked at her another moment, then said, "We should be getting inside."

He stepped out of the car, and stiffly headed towards the door. Lisa leaned her head against the back of the seat. So this was why he was...the way he was. He had had a _wife?_ So he had a reason for being a complete pain-in-the-ass. And for some reason, she despised him for it.

Because now it was harder to hate him.

Jackson sat heavily on the couch, feeling like choking something. Why, _why _did Lisa have to be so damn curious? He had told her something that he had never told anyone else. Why couldn't he have just ignored her? Why didn't he just give some witty retort and walk straight into the house? Then he wouldn't have had to answer her question.

At that moment, Lisa walked in. She looked confused. Just as she was about to speak, Jackson said, "So what are we going to do?"

His question had clearly taken her by surprise. "I...don't know," she said, looking foolish.

Jackson sat up. "Well, it's pretty clear that he wants us both in that alley," he said, "so the best idea is to just have you going in, and me at a distance..." Lisa seemed to be distracted. "Are you all right?" Jackson asked.

Lisa seemed to wake up. "Oh...I'm-I'm fine," she said, shaking her head.

Jackson seemed unconvinced. "If you insist," he said, looking concerned. He continued, "Anyway, you can go to the alley alone, and I'll be a few blocks down."

"But...but how will I be able to contact you if something goes wrong?" she asked nervously.

"Well..." he hadn't thought of that before. "Um...scream really, really loud."

Even as he said it, the idea seemed ridiculous. Evidently, Lisa seemed to think so too, because she began to laugh. Jackson looked stricken.

"A laugh," he said, smiling, "Haven't heard one of those out of you in five years."

She stopped, cleared her throat, and resumed talking. "Anyway, is there any other way I can contact you?"

He thought for a minute. "Afraid not, Leese," he said, shrugging. "Believe me, I'll know if something's wrong."

"How?"

He thought a moment. "I'll be closer than I originally thought. I can probably get away with being right next to the alley," he said, "There's a driveway right next to the alley on Westwood. I can hide out there. I'll know if something goes wrong."

Jackson looked at her, trying to look confident. Why was he so concerned for her life? What happened to the nights brooding over what she had done to him?

It was simple, he told himself. He needed to find Bentley, and he needed her to do it. It was the only way...

_Alrighty, chapter five done. Chapter six will be when Lisa meets Bentley in the alley. Lets just say that Lisa's not exactly going to be at her safest._


	6. Chapter Six: Abduction

**Chapter Six**

_11:35 P.M._

Lisa's hands were trembling on the steering wheel. She tried to stop, but couldn't.

"Scared?"

Lisa looked at Jackson and smiled weakly.

"A little," she admitted. She made the turn into the deserted driveway next to the alley. _I can't believe I'm actually doing this, _she thought.

"Remember what we talked about," Jackson said, "If anything happens, scream." He handed her a gun. "If you have to..."

She nodded. "Believe me, I took about a thousand self defense courses after you. I can handle myself." Despite the reassurance, she herself still felt nervous. She took the gun and stuck it in her purse. "For the record, I hate this. I swore never to look at your fugly face again. Now I have to look at it all the time."

He shook his head. "You don't have to look at me when you're out there," he pointed to the alley. "Try not to, anyway. Just one glance in my direction could give me away."

"Right." Lisa leaned her head against the back of the seat. _Here goes, Leese,_ she said to herself, took a breath, and opened the door.

Much less to her surprise, no one was there. It was just a little under a half an hour until midnight. They wouldn't be here yet.

She nervously reviewed what Jackson had told her. Use the gun if she had to, and if she couldn't, scream, scream, scream. She gave a large shudder. This was too much. This was the third time she was dealing with a life-threatening situation. She looked down the street. No one there. She heaved a long, heavy sigh.

Suddenly she felt extremely dizzy. She shook her head and tried to get rid of it, but it wouldn't stop. What was happening? She fell to the ground.

Then, it passed. She shook her head and stood up. That was the third time today she had felt dizzy. Why today, of all days?

She heard a car drive past. She tensed, but then it passed, and she relaxed. How long did she have to put up with this? She slipped her hand into her purse and pulled out her cell phone. 11:55. He would be here soon. _All I want is my family back, _she thought, close to tears. _I just want my life to go back to normal._

But for everything to go normal, she had to deal with this Bentley character. The one thing she didn't want to do. But it was necessary. If he ever got here...she checked her cell phone again. 12:01. He should be here any minute.

Lisa thought of her husband, how much she loved him...and how much longing she had to marry him. She thought of her daughter, of how she desperately wanted to see Mattie's lovely face again...it was all too much. Too much. Too-

"Hello, Lisa."

She was about to turn around to see who had spoken when a firm hand wrapped itself around her neck. "Don't move," the man said. She could tell that the man's voice was distorted, and she couldn't recognize it.

"Who are you?" she managed to choke out.

"That would be telling, wouldn't it?" the man said. "Now, if you would-"

Without warning, Lisa thrust her arm out and elbowed him. It had the desired effect: the man stumbled backward, giving her enough time to run away. Unfortunately, the man recovered quickly, and was soon at her heels.

_Run, Lisa, run..._she thought over and over. But the man was too fast. He was catching up to her. She had to do something. Before she could think of anything, she felt insanely dizzy. _Not again, not again!_ she thought. She fell to the ground, head spinning.

The man was there. He put his hand around her waist and pulled her up. As soon as she had recovered, she started thrashing around crazily. Then, without warning, the man put a white cloth over her mouth. An awful, bitter odor filled her nose and mouth, and she fell to the ground, unconscious.

_Finally, some action! I can't tell you about the next chapter without giving it away, so you'll have to wait until my next update. Chapter seven is in progress._


	7. Chapter Seven: Discovery

**Chapter Seven**

(NOTE: The next chapter is alternating between Lisa and Jackson's points of view. A lot. Just so you don't get confused...)

_What the hell just happened?_

That was all Jackson could think about as he sped the car after the van that had just taken Lisa. He had seen the man sneak up behind Lisa, but hadn't seen his face, because he was wearing a mask. His voice had definitely been distorted. But then Lisa had hit him and run for it, and Jackson couldn't see anything. Next thing he saw, the man was dragging Lisa down the alley and put her into the van nearby. She hadn't been moving, so Jackson assumed that she had been unconscious.

The man hadn't seen him, which was a good thing, but he had definitely noticed him following the van. It explained why the van was taking so many twists and turns. After a while, the van started on a normal course. So they thought they had lost him. Not a chance in the world. Jackson stayed a fair distance away from the van. He couldn't risk them seeing him again. The van made a left when he was about twelve feet away. He was about to make the same turn when he saw that they had pulled into a driveway.

Reluctantly, Jackson parked the car across the street. He would have to watch from a distance for now.

Lisa woke with an awful taste in her mouth. Groaning, she tried to push herself up, only to find that her hands were tied. She looked around her. She was in what appeared to be a hostel, judging by the number of beds in the room. There were about seven or eight, all unoccupied. Except for the one she was in. Hers was right next to the door.

She looked around, trying to find something useful. She looked above her. Her purse was hanging from a hook. She unsuccessfully tried to sit up and get it, but for some reason, her legs wouldn't work. It was as if they were paralyzed. Lisa slumped against the bedpost, frustrated.

Suddenly she heard angry voices and people walking down the hall. She strained to hear.

"...was stupid and unnecessary. You could have waited until you were sure no one was around."

"Don't sweat it. I lost the guy about halfway here."

"Don't ever take that risk again. It would have completely ruined everything..."

The voices faded as the people walked farther away from the door. Lisa felt like banging her head against something. What had they been talking about? Whoever had taken her was planning something. But what? What was the significance of taking her as well?

The voices were coming back, but this time they stopped right in front of the door.

"...completely irresponsible. He's waiting right across the street! 'You lost him' my ass."

"I'm sorry, Bentley, but I was positive we shook him off near 5th."

"Well, obviously you weren't sure, because he's out there right now! How could you _do _this?"

"We had no way of knowing that the girl had someone helping her out-"

"Of course we didn't! She was supposed to take him out for us! Instead she's assigned his help, and he managed to follow us!"

So Jackson had followed her. For someone so arrogant, he was proving himself to be quite reliable.

"How can we be sure it's him? I mean, the guy's completely selfish. It could just be a friend of hers, or something."

"I highly doubt that. Send someone out there to get him. We should..."

At this, the men started walking away. This was bad. Lisa couldn't help Jackson now. It was up to him to save his life.

---

Jackson watched for some activity in the house. It was a pretty big house, but that's where it ended in positive points. The house itself was an awful brownish color, and the yard was ridiculously unkept.

Jackson shook himself back into the real world. That wasn't what this was about. He had to somehow get inside, get Lisa, get her family, and get Bentley without being seen. It was nearly impossible. _But only nearly, _he told himself. _There has to be a way..._

He watched as two men circled the house. If he got out of the car now, he would probably get caught. If not, he would have to deal with the repercussions of waiting.

Something wasn't right. The two men were headed for his car. What was going on? Had they figured out that he was helping Lisa? This was bad, this was bad...

The two men reached the car. One held a gun to Jackson's head.

"I'm afraid you'll have to come with us," the man said, smiling menacingly.

---

Lisa stared at the wall, becoming extremely irritated. What were they planning to do with her? And why? Angrily she kicked the bedpost.

_Wait..._she thought, confused. She kicked it again. _My legs are working again! _she thought, excited. She got up on her knees and reached for her purse. The handle was still out of reach, but she grabbed the bottom of the purse and pulled. With a snap, the handle of the purse broke, and Lisa fell down on the bed.

Excitedly, she opened the bag and looked at the contents. They had taken the gun and the cell phone, go figure. She rummaged through as best as she could with her hands tied. She looked for anything remotely useful. Finally, she came upon some keys. _Finally, something useful, _she thought. She put the key between her legs, then put the rope to it and began sawing. After about five minutes, she hand almost completely gotten through the rope. _Come on, just a little more, _she thought, frustrated, finally, she got through the last strand of rope. _Yes! _she thought. She rubbed her wrists in pain. The ropes had been tight, and it took a while to get used to having them free.

Lisa tried to stand, but fell. Her legs were still too weak from whatever they had given her. Angrily, she got on her hands and knees and started crawling towards the door. She tried to open the door, but it was locked. _Always have to have a backup plan, don't ya? _she thought angrily. She then crawled over to the window across the room. It too was locked. They had obviously figured that she might get away. Frustrated, she went back over to the bed that she had been put on. She looked through her purse again. _Something useful, please, let there be something useful. _There was nothing. All she could do was sit and wait.

---

"And why would I do that?" Jackson said, smirking slightly.

"Because, I'm the one with the gun," the man said, looking impatient. "Now, get out of the car."

Jackson shook his head. "You know, I don't really feel like it," he said, reclining in his seat. "It's been a long drive. I don't really feel like moving."

The man looked at first angry, then smiled. "Well, I know you're not afraid of me," he said, "but I know you're afraid for your little friend in there." He pulled out a radio. "Now, you can get out of the car, or I can tell my boss to blow her head of right now."

Jackson paused for a moment. "What friend?" he said slowly, trying to sound confused.

"The one you traveled over fifty blocks to find, you dumbass," the man said angrily.

Jackson tried to look thoughtful. "I just got back here from New York. I was on my way home, and I got lost. I pulled over here to spend the night." He looked at them, trying to look angry. "I don't have a friend, or, at least, I wasn't trying to find one."

But the man didn't lower the gun. "Nice try, Rippner," he said. "Now, if you please, get out of the car. Bentley will be interested in seeing you again."

_Shit, shit, shit,_ Jackson thought. Knowing that he had no other choice, he climbed out of the car. The man with the gun, assuming victory, put the gun on his belt, grabbed Jackson by the arm, and steered him forward. As fast as he could, Jackson used his free arm to grab the man's gun and point it at his head.

"I really don't want to go, actually," Jackson said, smiling menacingly. The man fumbled with the radio, and Jackson pushed the gun harder into the man's head. "I don't think so," he said. He grabbed the radio, threw it to the ground, and smashed it. As soon as he was distracted, the second man threw himself at him. Taken by surprise, Jackson shot the man, and he fell to the ground, dead. The other man tackled him and tried to take the gun from him, but Jackson shot him in the arm. He was about to finish him off when he felt the barrel of a gun at his head.

"That's enough, Jackson," the gun holder said, a tone of amusement in his voice.

Jackson recognized the voice immediately. "Bentley," he said, stunned.

"I suggest we get inside," Bentley said, and with that steered Jackson into the building.

_Well, that was a bid of a long chapter. Next chapter will be...eventful, to say the least. This is all I'll say: prepare for a J.J. Abrams-like cliffhanger. I'll update soon._


	8. Chapter Eight: Familiar

**Chapter Eight**

Lisa heard the sound of a gunshot outside. She quickly went over to the window to look outside. There was Jackson, and Lisa was relieved to see that he was the one who had pulled the trigger. One man was dead, and another one was wrestling with Jackson. He shot the man in the arm, and aimed to kill the man. At that moment, Lisa could see a man run up and place a gun at Jackson's head. Lisa tried to see the man's face, but he was turned away. Knowing that Jackson would probably be killed, Lisa slid down and put her hands in her face, waiting for the gunshot. But it didn't come. When Lisa looked down, the man and Jackson were gone. Lisa was puzzled. _The man must have taken him inside, _she told herself.

She stood, her legs shaking, because they were still weak from the drug. _This is brilliant, _she thought sarcastically. _Now both of us are hostages. How are we going to get out of this one?_

Lisa put a hand to her head. She was feeling dizzy again, but not as bad as in the alley. _Why is this happening to me? _she thought. When the moment had passed, she walked as best she could over to the bed and sat down, trying to think up a plan. She had to get out of the room somehow. She walked over to the door and examined it carefully. The door itself was sturdy, but the hinges were weak. The screws holding them in seemed to be falling out. She went over to her purse and got the keys. She started to unscrew the first hinge, and it came out easily. She looked at the second hinge at the bottom. _All I need to do is get that one out, _she thought, _and I'm outta here. _She crouched down and started to unscrew the second hinge. Unfortunately, it wasn't as easy as the other one, and she had to work at it. Just as she was about to finish it, common sense kicked in. _What if someone is out there? _she thought. She wasn't strong enough to put up a fight. _I have to see if I'm alone. _She went to her purse again. Her prescription case would work. The top of the door was parted because the hinge was gone, and she threw the container through the space and waited. Either the people out there were deaf, or she was alone. With renewed vigor, she crouched back down and began to finish with the last hinge. When she had finished, the door fell on her, and she put her hands up to stop it from crashing. She carefully put it down on the floor.

_Okay, what now? _she thought, looking around. The place was not a hostel as she had originally thought, but what appeared to be a gigantic, ugly rat hole. It looked as if the place hadn't been cleaned in over twenty years.

_But that's not what this is about, Leese, _she told herself. _You have to find Jackson. You have to find Michael. You have to find Mattie. _She shook her head, overwhelmed. This wasn't working. How could she do this?

She started to walk down the hall. just as she was about to open a door, she heard voices coming out of a door in the opposite direction. Quietly as she could, she walked over to the door.

"...couldn't scurry out of this one, could you, Rippner? I have to say, I am impressed by how well you managed to follow us. You must really like Lisa, if you're willing to put your life on the line for her."

Why did his voice sound so familiar? Lisa didn't have much time to think about it, because Jackson started speaking.

"Only what is necessary, Bentley."

"I guess it was necessary. Should I be getting jealous?"

_That's an odd thing to say, _Lisa thought, puzzled. She put her ear to the door, trying to hear more.

"Where is she?"

"She's just fine. It's you and me now."

At this point, Lisa heard a crash, which she assumed was either Jackson raising hell on Bentley, or vice versa. She heard them fighting for a while, and then the sound of a gun being cocked. The voice she heard next was Bentley's:

"I'm really getting tired of this, Rippner," he said, sounding terrifyingly enraged. "I'll tell Lisa goodbye for you."

This was all she could take. She burst into the room, about to yell "stop!" but the words died in her throat.

Standing in front of her, a gun at Jackson's head, was not a complete stranger.

"You..." she said, but couldn't finish.

The man, Dixon Bentley, was Michael.

_HA! Double HA! Wrap your heads around THAT one! Bet you didn't see that coming. Well, yeah, you probably did. I hope you appreciate how much I had to hack and slash at this chapter to get it right. Anyway, two more chapters to go! Update will be soon!_


	9. Chapter Nine: Revelations

**Chapter Nine**

Lisa looked at Michael in horror.

"I don't understand..." she said, trying to string her thoughts together, but finding it impossible. There was only one thought in her head: _Michael is Bentley, Michael is Bentley, Michael is Bentley..._

Michael smiled at her. "Of course you do, Leese," he said, giving her a smile that made her shudder. "Now, if you don't mind..."

He then turned his attention to Jackson. "I guess I was wrong," he said, preparing to pull the trigger. "You can say goodbye yourself-"

He didn't get to finish, because at that moment Lisa recovered from her shock and threw herself at him. Taken by surprise, Michael fell backward, dropping his gun.

"Jackson, run!" she yelled, but instead he grabbed the gun and aimed it at Michael.

"I've waited too long," he said, eyes crazed.

"Jack, no!" she yelled, horrified. There was a "thud," and Jackson fell to the ground. Behind him was a man, the butt of his gun raised. He had knocked Jackson out. He then took careful aim at Lisa.

"Get up," he said, and Lisa obeyed. Michael ran over to Jackson and picked up the gun, aiming it instead at Jackson. "I guess I should have been jealous," Michael said, breathing heavily. Lisa shook her head, trying to figure out the facts.

"Why, Michael?" she asked, her eyes filled with tears. "Why me? Why did you have to choose me?"

"Simple," he said, "of all the people Jackson wanted to kill, it was you, wasn't it? If I married you, you would lead him to me when the time came. Then, I could finish my job." He stared down with intense hatred at the unconscious Jackson. "I have to say, I didn't anticipate you falling for him."

Lisa's head jerked in his direction. "What the hell are you talking about?" she said. "I just needed him to find Mattie-"

"Oh, don't even try," Michael said, disgusted. "If that were the truth, why did you try and save him? You knew where Mattie was, right here in this building. You didn't need him anymore. Why else would you save him?"

Lisa's shook her head, mouth open uselessly. Then, without warning, she punched the man who was aiming the gun at her. He fell to the ground, dropping the gun. She tried desperately to reach it, but Michael kicked it away. _Run like hell, run like hell, _she told herself over and over. If she ran, Jackson would die. If she stayed, Jackson would die anyway. There was no other choice.

Lisa didn't hear the expected gunshot, but instead footsteps running behind her. She looked back. Michael was close on her heels. So Jackson may not die after all. She ran as fast as she could, but she could still hear Michael gaining on her. How could this be happening? She took a fast turn down another hall. This seemed to throw Michael off, because his footsteps stopped for a moment before resuming.

Just when she thought she was on her was to freedom, she hit a wall with a hard _thud._ _Dead end! _she thought, looking around. There was a door to her right. She took a deep breath, then entered.

She was in what appeared to be a ballroom. A smelly, messy ballroom. In the far corner there was a closet. She ran over and shut herself in.

It was a closet where the ceiling sloped, so she assumed she was in the top floor. She rummaged to the back of the closed and hid herself behind a box.

At that moment, the door burst open, and she could hear footsteps walking around the room. "Where are you?" she heard Michael's voice echo through the large room. "_Where are you?_" he yelled, making the room feel like it was shaking.

Lisa stayed silent, hoping he wouldn't notice the closet.

"I could kill them, you know," he said, his voice almost crazed. "Your daughter, your friend down there. Just come out here, and they live."

This was bad. His voice was getting closer to the closet. She could hear his footsteps echoing through the room.

"That's what's wrong with you, Leese," he said in a low voice, although he was so close that Lisa could easily hear him. "You don't care about anyone but yourself. You don't even care about your own daughter." His voice was so close that she could hear him breathing. "You're pathetic."

The closet door swung open. Lisa held her breath, praying that he wouldn't check behind the boxes. She could hear a grunt of frustration, then nothing. She waited a moment. Was he gone? She peeked behind the box. No one there. As quietly as she could, she began to tiptoe out of the closet. So sooner had she gotten three steps from the closet than she felt a gun barrel at her head.

"Nice try, Leese," he said, and fired.

But she wasn't dead. She had heard the gun fired, but for some reason, she wasn't dead. She knew that she _should _be dead. He had shot a bullet into her skull. Why wasn't she dead?

Then she felt the weight of the barrel leave her head. She looked around at Michael. He wasn't looking back at her, but down at his stomach in shock. She looked there, too. She could see blood pouring out of a gunshot wound. And finally, she understood. The gun hadn't been fired by Michael, but by someone else. Michael dropped the gun and fell backward.

There, standing right behind him, was Jackson. He looked at Lisa with a look that she had never seen before.

Happiness.

---

Lisa glanced around the room she had just entered. There, sitting on the bed, was Mattie.

"Mama?" she said, looking puzzled.

Lisa's eyes were filled with tears. "Hey, sweetie," she said, wiping her face.

"Where Daddy?" she asked.

Lisa paused. She looked back at Jackson, who gave her a look that said, _tell her later._

Lisa sat down on the bed next to Mattie. "He's gone away for a while," she said, trying to hide the anger in her voice.

"Why?"

Lisa paused again. Then, sadly, "I don't know."

She lifted Mattie up into her arms and left the building, closely followed by Jackson. When Mattie caught sight of him, she asked, "Who that?"

Lisa stopped, then looked into her daughter's eyes. "He's a friend," she said, and smiled at Jackson, who nodded glumly back.

_One more chappy to go! Looks like Lisa and Jacko have made up nicely, wouldn't you say? Anyway, expect JxL in the last chapter._


	10. Chapter Ten: Reasons

**Chapter Ten**

(Note: I was just reviewing the finished chapters, and I realized I left a LOT of stuff out in the last chapter. I'm writing this to apologize to anyone who was confused by it.)

Lisa picked at her dress absentmindedly. Watching the coffin ride past, she tried her hardest to hold her tears back. Next to her, Mattie played with her doll. Lisa didn't want to confuse her by crying. It already confused her enough not knowing where her father was. Lisa knew that, someday, she would have to tell Mattie the truth. But she was only two years old. It was too soon.

Lisa felt a raindrop fall on her head. She knew that it was a bad idea to have the funeral outside, especially when it was in the middle of the rainy season. But Michael's mother insisted on it. Even now, only Lisa and the authorities knew what he had done. They had thought it would be best that way.

But no, Lisa wasn't the only person to know about Michael. Jackson knew, too. He had been let off, the police saying that he had acted in self-defense. Lisa wondered what he would have done if he didn't have a grudge against Michael. She shuddered at the thought. Would he have let her die? Or would he have saved her? She shook the thought out of her head. It hadn't happened like that. She would never know, and maybe that was best.

Lisa felt someone watching her. She looked behind her. There, leaning against a tree, was Jackson, watching from a distance, just like always. She turned around quickly. A deep part of her still hated him-she could never really forgive him for what he did to her on flight 1019. But something Michael had said to her just before he died had stuck with her-_I didn't anticipate you falling for him. _Was he right? Did she really have feelings for him?

_It's like a collision, _she thought, _a collision of thoughts and feelings. _She watched as they lowered Michael's coffin into the hole in the ground. The rain started to hit harder, making Lisa's hair droop. She distantly heard the words that the preacher was saying, how he had been a man of strength, man of kindness-basically everything he was not. _But until last week, I thought he was, _she thought, feeling sour.

People began to leave. Lisa picked up Mattie and handed her over to her aunt. "Can you take her for a minute? I need to talk to someone," she said. With that, she began to trudge over to Jackson.

"I'm sorry," he said when she reached him. She was glad that was all he said. If there was one person who she could count on to not spill blather about what a great man Michael was, it was Jackson.

"It's fine," Lisa said, looking into his eyes.

"No, it's not," he said, turning away. His face was filled with pain. Lisa looked at him and, for the first time, tried to imagine what his life was like. His wife died, and he became the man that he hated. For the first time, she felt more than pity and hatred for him. Without thinking, she reached up and kissed him.

After what seemed like forever, she pulled away. Jackson looked at her in shock. "I'm..." he started, but didn't finish. He just stared at her.

"Sorry," she whispered. For the longest time, they just stared at each other. Then, Jackson said, "I have to go."

He started down the hill. "Wait!" Lisa yelled, not really sure why. Jackson turned and looked at her. "I...I..." she started, but wasn't really sure what to say. Then, she said, "I've been thinking about what happened. When you...shot him. I just...why did you do it?"

Jackson walked up to her. "Do you want to know the truth?"

"Yes."

He took a deep, shuddering breath. "I did it for you."

Then, without another word, he turned, trudged down the hill, and left.

_It is OFFICIALLY finished! No excuses! Well, actually I was planning on writing a sequel, but I'm not sure if I will or not. I'm currently working on another Red Eye fic, and just as an early warning, I'm not making Jackson the fluffball he was in this fic. Well, anyway, I hope you enjoyed it, and there are more to come. Ta ta for now!_


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